Seoraksan National Park - Part III

Day2: Cable car and Ulsan Bawi rock

The next day, we took our time and had coffee and cup noodles in the hotel room before setting out. 

It was about 9:30 when we reached the park entrance. The park was quite busy now as several tour groups arrived. There were several groups of Indonesians as well as some from China.

The cable car was in operation and we decided to do the cable car first in case it shutdown again in the afternoon. There was a crowd and a long queue. It took a while before we got into the cable car. It was a short ride up (about 5-10 min). BTW, this is not like the Maokong cable car in Taipei where you get your own cabin. This is a relatively big one and you get lots of people squeezed inside. It was kind of stuffy in there and many people were trying to squeeze in and occupy the space next to the windows for photos and selfies...

The cable car at Seoraksan

There are viewing decks and a cafe at the cable car station.

Hotel Sorak Park seen from the cable car station

The Sinheungsa Big Buddha from the cable car station

You can see Sokcho city and the sea from the cable car station. It's not that far away.

But if you take the cable car, you should really take the trek to Gwongeumseong Fortress, which was basically where everybody was heading. It’s just a short flight of stairs away. From the name, I was expecting some sort of structure or ruins, but there were nothing like that. It was just a bare stone peak at the end of the trail. However, it’s a pretty peak and makes for good photo moments. Everybody was trying to take photos for his instagram or facebook…

I got really irritated by one group of tourists who were trying to shoo everyone away so that they can take photos with only themselves in the picture.

And there were many crazy people who were climbing real close to the edge to take photos… It was scary enough just looking at them…

There were no railings. And it’s really a sharp drop beyond the edge. I wonder if there had been any accidents…

My stomach was feeling queasy as I watched this woman get real close to the edge.

Another couple perching close to the edge for photos...

Anyway, I wasn’t going to take any foolish risk. I stayed far enough from the edge. The place was really big enough for nice pictures without taking unnecessary risks.

You really don't have to stand close to the edge for a nice photo...

Back at the cable car station, there was some chanting sound coming from below and a sign that pointed to a temple. We went down to check out the temple. The chanting actually comes from a recording. It’s a real small temple and nothing special about it. You can really skip it. However, the way down went through a pine forest and there was a nice pine scent was in the air.

A small temple just below the cable car station.

After we took the cable car down, we just drop into one of the several restaurants for lunch. I tried to ask for vegetarian options. Besides bibimbap, I was told the acorn jelly with rice is also vegetarian. I was game for something new and beside it is a hot day and the acorn jelly can be served cold. The acorn jelly came in a big bowl of a clear soup with ice and some seaweed and sliced kimchi. The jelly itself was bland. The soup taste like a soyu (soy sauce) base soup. I have a suspicious that bonito used to flavour it -- but if they did, it wasn’t obvious enough to me. But I didn’t really enjoy it. It was like eating bland agar agar with rice…

We started the trek towards Ulsanbawi Rock after lunch, about 1:30pm. The first part of the trek was easy, just like a walk in the park. There was a very well maintained trail and the climb was gentle. There were 2 small temples along the way.

A Buddha statue seen along the way up to Ulsanbawi rock (it's slightly off the trail, you won't see it if you don't turn into the temple).

I was starting to wonder if we will reach the top of the rock since we do not seem to be any closer...

Finally we reach the Heundeulbawi rock, which is a rock in front of a small hermitage nestled in a stone grotto. There is a fountain in front of the grotto. You can refill your water bottle here if you are out of water. I believe it is ground or spring water. We drank from the fountain and did not experience any problem.

The hermitage just below Ulsanbawi rock. There is a grotto that functions as a temple hall here.

The Buddha statue is quite similar in style to that in Seokguram Grotto.

I found the Buddha statue inside the grotto quite similar in style to the famous one in Seokguram Grotto in Gyeongju.

The Heundeulbawi rock. It looked like it may fall off if you push hard enough...

The trek got tough after Heundeulbawi as the ascend got steep. Soon it was just stairs going up and up, until you reach the base of the bare rocks. Then it was just a series of stairs on the vertical rock surface. But it really close once you reach here. It's just tough going up the stairs so take it slow. My friend almost gave up half way. In the end he managed to reach to top.

Stairs, stairs, and more stairs to the top...

In the map, the estimated time to get to the peak is 2 hours from the Information Center. We took about 3 hours. It was about 4pm when we reached the peak. The good thing about coming late during low season is that we practically have the peak to ourselves!

The view and experience from the peak of Ulsanbawi rock is really fantastic. You are really at the knife edge of the ridge and the rocks fall off steeply from both sides. On one side you see the National Park mountains. On the other side, you can see the express way going towards Sokcho as well as the various resorts found along the express way.

The peak of Ulsanbawi Rock

Selfie moment

Got someone to take a photo for us just below the peak

There were squirrels at the peak. This one is eating an almond nut we fed it!

In my opinion, if you come to Seoraksan, you really need to go up Ulsanbawi rock. Otherwise, it is like going to Beijing without going to the Great Wall of China!

It is probably doable as a day trip from Seoul if you set out early and be prepared to get back to Seoul late at night. It's just 4-5 hours round trip from the park entrance.

The descend was easy and fast and we got to the park entrance around 6pm. From there we took the bus to Sokcho Express Bus Terminal and ate in one of the restaurants.

After that we went down to Sokcho beach for a while. It's just down the road from the Express Bus Terminal. It was dark and we couldn't see much. It looked like a place where the local couples like to hang out.

We caught the bus from opposite Express Bus Terminal at about 9:10pm. It was probably one of the last few buses.

Seoraksan National Park - Part II

Day1: Sinheungsa and Biryong falls

After checking into Sorak Park Hotel, we had a short coffee break (I brought my own kopi-o kosong from Singapore. I find the coffee in Korea quite bland.) before heading to the national park. It’s a nice leisurely walk that will take you 15-20 minutes to get to the park entrance. (Or take the bus if you do not want to walk).

The park entrance fee was 3500 won per person. There are no multi-day passes. You just pay each day you enter the park.

It was about 3:30pm when we got to the park. It was probably low season and late in the afternoon. The park was relatively quiet and that was very nice.

My initial plan was to do the cable car trip and then visit the Sinheungsa Temple. However, the cable car was not in operation due to strong winds. BTW, we saw a warning notice that if you take the cable car up the peak and it has to stop operation due to strong winds, then you have to trek your way down! So pay heed!

With the cable car shut down, we visited the Sinheungsa Temple first. Visitors will encounter the stately big bronze Buddha statue first. It turn out to be smaller than what I had imagined, but is still pretty impressive.

The Big Buddha of Sinheungsa temple

The temple proper is slightly further up past a river. Half of the temple ground were closed as some construction or repairs were going on. None of the halls or buildings were particularly spectacular. But there was a nice solemn and peaceful atmosphere which I like.

A stone lantern in the temple compound. The mountain peaks surrounds the temple. It is very atmospheric.

The Hall of Extreme Happiness - dedicated to the Amitabha Buddha

The river by the temple is also very nice and there are steps to get down to the river.

The river that runs by the temple. You can walk down to the river. The bare rocks in the distance is Ulsan Bawi, which we were going up the next day.

With just about 2-3 hours of daylight left, we decided we could still do the Biryeong falls trek. This is a trek to the Biryeong waterfalls and it’s a relatively easy trek with just a slight ascend.

The trails are very well maintained without any big steps. Along the way, you will pass by the Yukdam falls and a suspension bridge.

Suspension bridge on the Biryeong Falls trek. Don't worry, it's very stable!

Part of the trail is a series of stairs mounted on a cliff!

I must say I wasn’t impressed with the Biryeong falls at all… It’s a rather small waterfall. I think what was supposed to be special about this falls is not the size, but the shape. It is supposed to resemble a flying dragon (hence the name Biryeong 飞龙 which literally means flying dragon), though I think it requires quite a bit of imagination…

This is the Flying Dragon falls... Does it look like a dragon?

Beyond the Biryeong falls, you can go further to a observatory to see another waterfall. It looks like a speculator waterfall on the other side of the mountain. The sign says 800m, which seemed near enough. So we started going up the stairs…

After what seemed like a long time, the sign says it’s still 700m away. And when the sign says it’s still 600m after what we were sure was more than 100m of walking up stairs, we decided to turn back. I am not sure how the distance were measured. It definitely wasn’t the distance we walked up the stairs. I suspect it was a point to point measurement…

In any case, the sun had set behind the mountains and daylight was fading. We didn’t want to trek in the dark back (I did bring torchlight for this trip but left it in the hotel…). So we just turned back.

It was about 7:30pm when we reach the entrance of the park. All the restaurants were closed. It was also too late to take the bus to Sokcho for dinner. We ended up having dinner in one of the mom-and-pop restaurant near Hotel Sorak Park. We were the only customers. I had a bibimbap for 8000won. It wasn’t nice… We decided we would go to Sokcho for dinner the next day.

There were 2 convenience cum souvenir stores still open about 8:30pm and we got cup noodles for breakfast the next day.

When we got back to the hotel, the wind really picked up and was very strong. The door to the balcony was banging… I imagine it would be scary if you are still trekking out there in the dark...

BTW, the hotel room has both air conditioning and heater. But we didn’t use either during our stay as the temperature was comfortable for us.

Seoraksan National Park - Part I

I haven't posted for a longggg time. For my last Korea trip, I relied on a few people's blog for information on the trip to Seoraksan National Park. So I thought I would share my experience for others as well. This is my way of paying forward. :)

This is my second South Korean trip. I really didn't expect to be back so soon. But I came to known about Seoraksan and got interested in it. As I did my research, I found that there are really many mountains and nice trekking destinations in South Korean. I believe I will be back again pretty soon.

The highlight of this trip is to trek at the Seoraksan National Park. Seoraksan (雪岳山), means Snow Peak Mountains in Korean and is located on the north easten coast of South Korean. Seoraksan is quite a big national park and there are several park entrance. Most visitors go to the Seorakdong park entrance where the Sinheungsa temple is located and is easily accessed from Sokcho. Those who want hot springs should go to Osaek.

For my trip, I was just doing the simple day treks from Seorakdong.

You can get to Seoraksan from Dong Seoul Bus terminal next to the Gangbyeon subway station or from the Express Bus Terminal in Gangnam.

I took the express bus from the Express Bus Terminal (used to be called the Gangnam Express Bus Terminal, now just simply the Express Bus Terminal. The subway station has same name.) I arrived at the terminal at 8:40 am and managed to get tickets for the 9:00 am bus.

I heard that tickets can be hard to get on weekends and holidays. I was there on Monday in May. The bus was almost full when it departed (on the dot).

The bus was comfortable with spacious seats (three seats in a row). It took the expressway all the way with a 15 min stop halfway. We arrived at the Sokcho Express bus terminal at 11:30am. The journey took only 2.5 hours even though Sokcho is on the east coast (Korea isn't that big after all!).

The Sokcho Express Bus Terminal

There is an Tourist Information booth in front of the terminal. The staff in the booth could speak English and was very helpful. There are maps outside the booth so you still get a map even if it is closed.

To get to Seoraksan, you need to cross the road and take bus 7 or 7-1. The bus fare is now 1200 (as of May 2016). The staff at the Information booth told us that we can't use T-money as the buses here use a different store value card. We ended up paying by cash for the next few days, so it's useful to keep exact change. Actually the bus driver can give change if you don't have the exact change. I think you need to tell the driver how much you are paying. I find it easier just to prepare the exact change.

As we arrived around noon, we decided to have lunch first before heading to Seoraksan. There is a row of small little restaurants along the road next to the Express Bus Terminal (between the terminal and the traffic light). We tried several of these restaurants over the next few days and they were all not bad. These are small mom-and-pop restaurants (actually more of a one-woman operated restaurants). They are quiet and on some days, we were the only customers. They serve the usual Korean food -- jiggaes (stews), bibimbap, sundaes (pronounced "soon day", they are stuffed intestines or squids) among other things. The owners do not speak English but English menus are available. Prices start from 7000 won for a bibimbap or jiggae (most were 8000won).

After a satisfying meal (I'll blog about the food seperately), we cross the road to the opposite side. I was surprised that buses are quite frequent. Both 7 and 7-1 comes roughly every 15 minutes and runs to 9:15 pm. If I had known that, I would have stayed in Sokcho rather than up in the mountains. You only need to stay in Seoraksan if you intend to trek very early in the morning. (In May, there was daylight at 4am).

The bus journey to Seoraksan was only 20 minutes. The bus terminates at the entrance of Seoraksan. We were staying at the Sorak Park Hotel, which was one bus stop before the entrance.

The Sorak Park Hotel is one of the hotels closest to the National Park. There is a Seoraksan Tourist Resort which is right inside the park, but it was closed for renovation. The Kensingston Star Hotel is just outside the park entrance. I tried to look for the hotel for my trip but, curiously, it was not available on several of the hotel booking websites I searched. I thought it was closed. But it was evidently open and looked well occupied when I was there. It looked like a nice hotel and would most likely be beyond my budget anyway.

There are two clusters of hotels outside Seoraksan Park entrance. The Sorak Park Hotel is the nicest hotel among the smaller cluster which is closer to the park. The other cluster is about another km away and has more hotels and shops/restaurants.

The Sorak Park Hotel looked pretty grand from the outside. It has a pointed triangular shape that is quite recognizable. It is perched on a slope, so you do have to walk up the slope from the bus stop. I saw some guests complaining about that. But hey, if you are here to do some trekking, the little slope should not be anything to complain about!

The Sorak Park Hotel

This is a hotel that has seen better times. It used to host a casino as well. All the amenities within the hotel are closed, including the restaurant and convenience store. (I am not sure if they open in peak season, but they were closed when I was there). The hotel was almost deserted when I was there. I only saw one staff at the reception counter, and another cleaning staff. I think only 2 or 3 other rooms had guest during my stay. At night, almost all the rooms were dark.

But the rooms were great, especially since I only paid roughly USD60 per night (for 2 persons, including taxes, excluding breakfast)! The rooms were spacious and you get a great view of the mountain. You can even see the sea and the Sokcho town from the balcony. The bathroom has a bathtub which is nice for a soak after a long day of trekking (but I generally don’t use the bathtub, it’s too wasteful in terms of water and heat use). It’s nice to make a cup of coffee and sit by the coffee table, enjoying the view outside.

Spacious room with nice view of the mountains in Hotel Sorak Park

I didn’t get the breakfast because it was not worth it (it was almost another USD15 per person). You can get bread or instant noodles from the stores near the bus stop. If you are not starting too early, you can actually eat breakfast in the restaurants and cafes within the park. I was surprised to find the restaurants in the park are very reasonably priced. They did not charge “resort” prices -- it’s almost the same as the restaurants outside the park and in Seoul (e.g. 8000 won for a bibimbap).

I stayed 3 nights in Sorak Park Hotel. As much as I enjoyed the hotel, I must say that I won’t recommend staying there if you are just visiting Seoraksan for causal treks. It's not that the hotel is not good (it is!), but because there really isn’t much dining options or activities after dark, and the buses between Sokcho and Seoraksan are pretty convenient and frequent. You are better off staying in Sokcho and take the bus up each day.

In my opinion, you only need to stay in one of the hotels in Seoraksan only if you need to do long treks and need to start real early or may come back late. After the first night, we ended up taking the bus to Sokcho after our treks anyway. 

To be sure, I was there at low season. I am not sure what the bus situation will be like during peak season.

To be continued...